1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method and apparatus for imprinting high resolution images onto natural or artificial lawns and fields, covered areas such as sports fields, and landscapes, for example to provide a new or enhanced media for marketing, advertising, and beautification.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Certain types of lawn patterning techniques have been used in the past to enhance the visual characteristics of sports fields, and commercial and residential landscapes. These patterning techniques are produced with lawn maintenance equipment, such as mowers that are piloted by grounds keepers. The state of the art has heretofore not allowed for the creation of precise, consistent, and repeatable patterns. Thus, the conception and execution of a patterning procedure has been more art than science, and the outcome of the pattern has thus been largely dependent upon the operator's skill and the characteristics of the equipment used to implement the design.
Current equipment, such as tractors fitted with multi-implement mowers, are designed for efficiency, cutting, or patterning wide swaths of lawn and turf. Attempts to produce improved detail have been limited by the equipment's fixed width and lack of ability to create details or contrast with any degree of precision.
One limitation of the prior art is that the quality of patterning depends on how precisely the operator is able to guide the equipment. Thus, to create accurate imagery the operator must make careful use of local land marks when operating any patterning equipment. The quality of the patterning often suffers from accumulated ranging errors. Further degradation occurs as the patterning area increases and when there is an absence of line-of-sight feedback to the operator.
Thus, existing lawn and turf maintenance equipment and operations used to produce patterns do not have sufficient resolution and precision to produce highly detailed artwork, such as pictures, corporate logos, and script.